UK consumer and business morale touched five-month high pre-election - Surveys

According to the latest surveys by the market research firm GfK and Lloyds Bank, the UK consumer and business confidence was boosted to the highest in five months in the run-up to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s emphatic election victory last week, as cited by Reuters.

Key Findings:

Consumer confidence rose to -11 in December from -14 in November, according to the long-running survey from GfK.

A Lloyds Bank gauge of business confidence also rose to its highest level since July at 10%, up a point from last month.

Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK, said: “Despite official warning signs about the flatlining of Britain’s economy, we know that record-high employment and below-target levels of inflation are helping to boost consumers’ expectations for the year ahead.” 

Meanwhile, Hann-Ju Ho, a senior economist at Lloyds noted: “There is now clarity over the UK’s departure from the EU, but the focus will turn to whether a new trade agreement can be negotiated during the transition period which currently runs until the end of next year.”

The GBP/USD pair posts minor gains on the 1.30 handle, attempting to recover the post-BOE drop to 1.2991 levels. Focus remains on the Brexit drama ahead. UK PM Johnson will submit his Withdrawal Agreement Bill to the House of Commons and is expected to pass comfortably after Johnson’s victory last week.